10 Diminished Patterns That Will Transform Your Next Jazz Solo…

What comes to mind when you hear the word diminished? A chord? A scale? Wait, is it whole-steps and half-steps…or the other way around? If you’re like most players, the diminished sound often creates more questions than answers. But it’s a sound that the greatest players – from John Coltrane to Michael Brecker and beyond – have used to add harmonic complexity and melodic interest to their solos.

And it’s one that you can use in your solos as well…if you have the know-how.

You see, the premise of a diminished chord or pattern is simple, but when you start applying this sound to your solos, the details can get complex very quickly.

And this is exactly what we’re going to look at today…

Stacking minor thirds…

Before we start digging in to these diminished patterns, you need to start with an understanding the structure of the diminished chord.

And luckily it’s pretty straightforward, a fully diminished chord is simply a stack of minor 3rds…

Because the construction of these chords is symmetrical, there are only 3 diminished options: a stack of minor 3rds from C, from C#, and from D. That’s it – the pattern just repeats itself.

The most common way you’ll use this sound in your solos is over dominant chords. Applying this diminished structure over a V7 sound is an easy way to access the altered notes of a dominant chord in a logical way.

And again, since the construction of the structure is symmetrical you can apply this sound to any dominant chord built from the related chord tones: (C7, Eb7, F#7, A7)

Whichever V7 chord you choose to apply it to, you’ll always highlight the root, #9, #11, and 13 of that dominant chord. For example, if you play that F# fully diminished over a C7…

…you’ll get the #11, 13, root and #9.

Start by being able to visualize this structure from any starting note, (remember there are only 3 options). Keep in mind that every example that we’ll show below is built off of this basic structure

But wait…why not just think of a diminished scale??

Because a scale is just one option for accessing a diminished sound in your solos. And thinking of only one scale can put you in a box. However, by thinking of the diminished chord structure as a whole, you open up many other possibilities (that can include scales and much more).

And this will become apparent when you study at the examples below…

We’ve searched through scores of famous solos – from Coltrane to Brecker, Herbie Hancock and beyond – to find useful examples of the diminished sound that you can use in your own solos.

Let’s take a look at the 10 diminished patterns that will transform your solos…

I. John Coltrane and the diminished pattern

John Coltrane is known for his in-depth study of scales and musical relationships. From Giant Steps to his late quartet, he was constantly searching for new ways to navigate the familiar harmonies and progressions of the jazz repertoire.

And one of these avenues was the minor third relationship of the diminished sound…

Probably the most well known diminished pattern comes from his solo on Moment’s Notice. Over a Bb pedal he plays the following line:

Two months after recording the Blue Train session, Coltrane recorded a live perfomance at Carnegie Hall with Thelonious Monk. In his solo over the tune Epistrophy you can hear the same diminished pattern in action:

This is a pattern that he often used in his solos, check out his solo on Peep. Here he takes the Coltrane pattern from above and substitutes a descending 4th into the mix, instead of the descending whole-step:

(You can also think of this as a descending 1st inversion triad, but we’ll get to that later…)

Another player to explore the possibilities of the diminished structure over dominant sounds was the great Mulgrew Miller. Listen this line from his solo on You and the Night and the Music:

In this line he’s implying a pattern of first inversion triads (C, A, F#, Eb) but leaving out the 5th – a minor 6th jump from 3rd to root. Start by practicing a pattern of first inversion triads on each diminished chord tones.

The larger intervals he uses in the original line are a great way to create melodic interest and avoid sounding mechanical when using a pattern.

In this pattern he utilizes the diminished sound over a C7 chord that resolves to F-7. Let’s take a closer look at this line. Below you can see how he is using a descending C triad, A triad, and so on:

He approaches each descending triad by a minor third – combining the minor 3rd relationship of the diminished chord with the concept of the related major triads.

Here’s how you can practice a triadic approach to the diminished sound:

IV. Using the diminished scale

The most common way that many players access the diminished sound, and the one that you find in schools, is through a scale – namely the diminished scale:

It’s an eight note or octatonic scale that alternates between half-steps and whole-steps. Some also refer to this as the double diminished scale because it can be conceptualized as alternating between two diminished arpeggios (C, Eb, F#, A and C#, E, G, Bb).

“…its complications make up its best quality – the potential for giving your solo an “outside” sound. Because this scale breaks the boundaries, it can create a lot of harmonic propulsion in dominant contexts. Like a chromatic scale, it’s ambiguous, but – unlike the chromatic scale – it demands resolution.” ~ Pat Metheney (from Diminished Capacity)

Along with a triadic or chord tone approach to the diminished sound, many great players have also applied this scale to their solos. If we go back to the earlier Coltrane line from Epistrophy, you’ll notice that he ends the line with this diminished scale:

Another notable improviser that used this scale in a melodic way is Herbie Hancock. Check out this line from his solo on There is no Greater Loveand notice how he utilizes the diminished scale over a C7 chord:

In this line, Kirkland is using the inverse of the Coltrane pattern – moving a whole step up from each diminished chord tone. You can also conceptualize this pattern as derived from the whole-half diminished scale:

However, the famous “Kenny Kirkland diminished line” is a little more complex. Listen to this live clip of him playing at the Keystone Corner. At about 10 seconds in you can hear this diminished pattern:

Here’s another example of the same pattern that’s a bit slower over a minor ii-V7 on the tune Black Nile:

Take a look at how he uses a combination of the diminished structure, the diminished scale, and the first inversion triad. Take this line apart piece by piece and work it into your approach to dominant chords.

There’s a lot going on in this line…but based on what we’ve covered so far you should be able to pick out some of the diminished concepts at work.

Start by breaking down the line into pieces and figure out what individual techniques Chick is using to access the different variations of the diminished sound.

Ready, set, go

So there you have it…

10 diminished patterns and a lifetime of work!

But remember…you don’t have to do everything at once. Start by visualizing and ingraining the minor third relationship of the diminished chord tones in every key (there are only 3).

Then pick one of the 10 diminished patterns and take it into the practice room for a week. After you feel confident with it, start applying it to the dominant chords in your solos.

Keep in mind that these diminished patterns can sound contrived or out of place when played note for note or forced into a solo.

Aim to apply these patterns in a musical way. You don’t want to sound like a robot when you improvise. These diminished options, like any other jazz language that you learn, are just more tools for you to create your sound.

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